Theodor

Did you know?

A few things about Theodor you might not know, from US birth records and Wikipedia. Handy for convincing a partner, or a grandparent.

⭐ Famous Theodor

Theodor W. Adorno

German philosopher, sociologist and theorist (1903–1969)

Choose Theodor and your child shares a first name with Theodor W. Adorno, a German philosopher, sociologist and theorist. A ready-made answer when someone asks “Theodor, like who?” Theodor W. Adorno's Wikipedia article is available in 104 languages, a good sign of just how widely known they are.

Read about Theodor W. Adorno on Wikipedia ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Photo: Jeremy J. Shapiro, CC BY-SA 3.0 (opens in a new tab), via Wikimedia Commons

• 👶How commonAbout 1 in every 22,472 baby boys born in the US in 2025 was named Theodor, 76 babies in all. In a typical school of 500 kids, your Theodor would very likely be the only one.
• 📜HistoryTheodor first shows up in US birth records in 1884, the first year at least 5 babies got it. It has been in use for 141 years since.
• 🏆Best yearIts best year was 1887, when it reached #921.
• 📈Then vs nowTheodor is 4.6× more common today than it was in 2000. In 2000 it was given to about 1 in 103,093 baby boys; in 2025, about 1 in 22,472.
• 🍂TrendTheodor has slipped 120 places over the last five years and now sits at #1,992. Good news if you want a familiar name that fewer kids will share.
• 📍Where it's lovedTheodor is most popular in Massachusetts, where it ranks #789. It's in the top 1,000 in 1 state.
• 💬MeaningTheodor is a German form of Theodore, which means “gift of God”.

About the name Theodor

Theodor is a boy name of Greek origin meaning “gift of God”. It has 7 letters and 2 syllables, starting with T and ending in “-dor”. US birth records list Theodor for boys from 1884 to 2025, in 113 of those 142 years. Its best year was 1887, when it ranked #921 among boy names. In 2025 it ranked #1,992, with 76 babies.

Origin:Greek names